Hot Chocolate Mishap
by Crimson Quincy
Summary: He never said to add water. IchiRuki, oneshot.


A/N: One of my Christmas presents to the IchiRuki FC at Bleach Asylum! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or any of the characters.

Summary: He never said to add water. IchiRuki, oneshot.

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Hot Chocolate Mishap

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"Ichigo... why is this stuff called 'hot chocolate'?" She held up a packet in front of his face, then muttered, "It doesn't feel very hot..."

Ichigo had an urge to facepalm after that, but he restrained himself. Giving his homework a rest for a second, he swiveled in his chair and turned to her. "It's not hot now, because you need to heat it up. You know, in a microwave."

"Oh..." the Kuchiki said simply. She noticed he had turned back around, but talked anyway. "Well, how do I make it?"

"Just put it in a glass and stir it. Then you heat it up." He said, waving her off. He was already back to doing his homework. She gave him a questioning brow, but headed out of the room and to the kitchen none-the-less.

Rukia eyed the packet and ripped the top off, opening it. "Well it smells nice..." She got a mug and poured the powder in. It didn't look very appetizing to her, really, but she's heard it was popular in the living world. She shrugged and began to stir it with a spoon, not really sure why it needed to be stirred in the first place. She picked up the packet to find how long to heat it up for. The directions were half torn off, but she got the time anyway.

"3 minutes." She repeated to herself. Sticking the mug into the microwave, she set it to the appropriate time and pressed start. 3 minutes was awhile, so she wandered away. She went up to Ichigo's room to bother him--that always passed time.

Hearing light footsteps come up behind him and feeling the familiar presence, he knew it was Rukia. "Did you make the hot chocolate?" He said without turning around.

"Yeah, it's in the microwave now. I've got to say though, it doesn't look very tasty."

Raising a brow, he spun around slowly to her, "What do you mean?"

"Well, it's just... powder! How is heated chocolate _powder_ supposed to taste any good?!"

It took only a millisecond for Ichigo to understand why he had a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. "You... you put water in it, right? Water, or milk, or something, right?!"

She blinked at him and then furrowed her brow. "No... you never told me--"

_**BEEP ... BEEP ... BEEP**_

Ichigo's eyes widened, that was the smoke alarm.

"SHIT!" he bolted out of his room and down the stairs so fast it looked like he used shunpo.

A bewildered Rukia stood there for a second before rushing down too. What did she do now?!

Downstairs, Ichigo immediately noticed the smell of burnt cocoa and the bounds of smoke coming from the microwave, but he turned off the alarm first. He couldn't stand that beeping. Coughing a bit, he pulled his shirt over his nose. He then ran over to the microwave, grabbing an oven mit along the way. He could see the faint glow of a fire in the appliance. His scowl deepened as he opened the door to the microwave hurriedly and pulled out the mug. He practically threw it in the sink and turned on the tap immediately, ceasing the fire.

Sighing, he went around the room, opening up all the windows, then lastly the door to get the smoke out. It was cold, but better than breathing the substance. Leaning against the wall outside, he slid down into a sitting position, catching his breath.

Rukia had watched the whole thing play out, glued to her spot by the steps. Frowning, she grabbed both his coat and hers before heading outside too. Walking out the door, she threw his at him.

"Mmph!" Taking the coat off his face, he turned to glare at her, "What was that for?!"

"It's cold out." She said simply, pulling hers on and sitting next to him.

He paused and looked over at her. She was staring out into the distance, probably at nothing in particular. Most likely, she was upset at herself. Studying her face a little, he noticed her features. The sunlight was shining on her face; it made her glow, especially her eyes. the violet and indigo of her orbs sparkled brilliantly.

Ichigo got up suddenly, having decided on something. "Come on."

"Come on what?" She looked up at him.

"Just follow me." He started to walk away. Rukia got up, even though she was quite confused. She had more expected him to yell at her.

After she caught up to him, they walked side by side down the street. She had to admit, she liked seeing him out in this weather. It was sunny, but there was still plenty of new fallen snow on the ground, making everything shine. He stood out like a sore thumb with his orange hair amongst the white, and almost looked like he didn't belong. But she liked that contrast. It suited him somehow.

Before she knew it, they were in front of a coffee shop. Now she was even more confused, but she didn't ask. They went inside and chose a table for 2.

"Stay here." He practically ordered as he went to the counter. She only huffed in response, crossing her arms. Whatever this was, it better be fast. They left the door open...

A couple minutes later, Ichigo returned with 2 steaming cups in hand. He placed one on her side and his, then sat down. "You might want to let it cool down a little." He warned, picking his up and blowing on it.

She blinked at him, still confused as to why he would randomly get her a beverage. She stared intently at it. "What is it?"

"You'll see." Oh, she didn't like that idea.

"Just tell me, strawberry!"

His scowl deepened, "No! Try it first. _Then_ I'll tell you." Bringing up his drink to his lips, he sipped at it, gauging the temperature before taking a gulp of it.

Rukia stared at him now. Well, if he was drinking it... She piccked it up in her hands and looked at the marshmellows that were slowly melting at the top.

"Just drink it! It's not poison." She only glared at him as she dared try it.

And she was pleasantly suprised. It was actually very good. "What... what is this, Ichigo?"

"Hot chocolate." He smirked, looking at her. He watched her expression change from shock to a warm smile. That's it, that's what he wanted. A smiling Rukia is far better than an upset one. He couldn't help but smile back a little at her.

"...Thanks, Ichigo. And sorry about your microwave." Rukia looked away, still embarrassed.

"Eh, it's alright. We needed a new one anyway." the strawberry said, trying to make light of the situation. It would be annoying to explain to his father, though. Especially the part where he took her to the cafe... maybe he'd leave that out of the story for his own sake.

Besides, he liked keeping moments like these with her all to himself.

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A/N: This short little oneshot is based off a story a teacher of mine told me. Apparently, in college, her friend never heard of hot chocolate and almost made it without liquid. XD So I thought to myself, "Hey, that's something Rukia might do." :P I hope you enjoyed it!


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